The Sewer King is a villain originally created by Tom Ruegger as a minor foe for Batman. He is a staff-carrying, sewer-dwelling villain with an army of runaway children he uses as pick-pockets.
History
A man shunned by society and stricken with poverty, the crazed Sewer King decided to live in the sewer. His real name unknown, he was quickly able to adapt to sewer life and actually train alligators as his pets. He also kidnapped orphans, making them work for him in the cold, dark sewer, and struck them with silence and abuse, marking his territory in the sewers with spray-painted signs warning: "Beware The Sewer King". Batman soon encountered some of Sewer King's orphans, who had been committing petty crimes. He saved one and soon learned that the boy belonged to a gang of forgotten runaways who lived deep within the Gotham sewer system. He also learned that the Sewer King forced the children to steal food and supplies for him. Batman marched upon his underground society and was able to free the orphans, destroy his evil society, and help the orphans find good homes. The Sewer King was taken to jail, and his pets were taken off to the zoo. The Sewer King waited patiently for his pets to free him from prison. His crocodiles is presumed to be catch and send on the zoo of gotham.
52 Comic Book Storyline
The Sewer King later escaped in the 52 storyline published by DC Comics, and continued his activities as a low-ranking underworld figure, only to be slain by Intergang boss Bruno "Ugly" Mannheim along with Kite Man, Mirage, and Rawson when he hesitated to submit to Intergang. Attending a meeting of local organized crime bosses in Mannheim's boardroom, he fared rather poorly, and was possibly the first such villain to be killed by Mannheim. When the Intergang leader lost his patience with the Sewer King, he did not hesitate to immediately stab the sewer-dwelling villain in the back with a dagger, killing him. This is during Intergang's continuing rise to power in Gotham City outlined in that series. After the death of Sewer King, Intergang erased his name from the public records, as if he never had existed.
In Other Media
- The Sewer King first appeared in Batman: The Animated Series as a minor foe of Batman. The episode "The Underdwellers" tells the story of his first encounter with Batman.
Trivia
- The Sewer King shares his name with a character from the animated series Hey Arnold.
- After Batman captures the Sewer King in "The Underdwellers", he comments that he was tempted to deal with the Sewer King himself for what he did to the children.
- Sewer King's eccentric garb suggests a pirate--specifically Captain Hook, and his squad of lost children suggest Peter Pan's Lost Boys. He also employs crocodiles--ironic, because Hook feared and hated crocodiles, particularly the one who bit his hand off--and at one point seems to be torn to pieces by the beasts (though it is a ploy). Both men also have handicaps--Hook has his missing hand replaced by a namesake metal hook, and Sewer King wears one dark glasses lens, suggesting both that is partially visually-impaired and giving the impression of a pirate's eyepatch.
- The Sewer King's use of children as thieves is reminiscent of Fagin from Oliver Twist. His wielding of a staff and the use of children as slaves is also reminiscent of Mr. Bumble from Oliver Twist. However the Sewer king is far crueler than Fagin or Mr. Bumble.
